PRINCETON, N.J. – As elite rowers from around the world prepare to kick off the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro on Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas in Copacabana, their junior counterparts will be reminiscing on their own time spent on the lagoon last summer.

The 2015 World Rowing Junior Championships, the test event for the Olympics, was a standout campaign for the U.S. juniors, as the women’s four took gold, the men’s eight won silver and the women’s pair, women’s quadruple sculls and women’s eight won bronze medals, giving the U.S. a team record of five medals. Germany won the medal count with 11, while the U.S. and Italy finished second with five medals each.

The championships will be unique in that the senior, under 23 and junior events will be held simultaneously for the first time at the Willem-Alexanderbaan Rowing Regatta Venue in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

The U.S. roster includes athletes from 14 states with California claiming 22 of the 54 athletes. ­Sarasota Crew from Sarasota, Fla., is the most represented club with five athletes.

The eight-day event features U.S. crews in 13 junior events including the men’s and women’s singlesculls, men’s and women’s double sculls, men’s and women’s quadruple sculls, men’s and women’s pair, men’s and women’s four, men’s four with coxswain, and men’s and women’s eight.

Complete press coverage, athlete bios and links to event information can be found at www.usrowing.org and www.worldrowing.com. Follow along with the U.S. junior, under 23 and senior national teams as they prepare for the world rowing championships using the hashtag #rowtorotterdam and #WRCH2016.